10 NFL Teams That Need to Draft a Quarterback

It's the most important position in football. Often times, it makes or breaks a team's season.

We saw that again this year, as teams with less-than-stellar QB play managed only a few wins. So which teams exactly need to be looking for a quarterback in April's NFL draft? Let's take a look at the obvious and some not-so-obvious teams that could use another QB.

Oakland Raiders

We'll start with a team that certainly falls on the obvious side as far as QB needs go.

Jamarcus Russell came to Oakland as a number one pick a few years back, and has done absolutely nothing to verify his status as a first round quarterback.

Helping the Raiders to their next-to-last finish in the league in completion percentage, Russell managed to complete just over 48 per cent of his passes. He threw three touchdowns—a lot less than the 11 picks he threw in his 12 games.

Perhaps the worst part is just his play on the field. It's the fact he's got an Eric Mangino body with a Stephon Marbury work ethic. Not exactly what you want from your QB.

Bruce Gradkowski played well enough as a backup and even started some games, but he's not really a full-time starter. The Raiders would be smart to draft a quarterback in the first round, but knowing Al Davis, he'll do something crazy like ask Matt Millen for advice, and draft another useless wide receiver.

Carolina Panthers

Ever since last year's divisional playoff loss to the Cardinals, Panthers' fans have been holding their breath every time Jake Delhomme drops back to pass. Sadly, it wasn't until Week 12 when Delhomme went down with an injury that Carolina fans could finally exhale.

Delhomme had a completely forgettable season, throwing only eight touchdowns along with 18 interceptions. And those numbers are only through 11 games.

Backup Matt Moore came in and finished the season after Delhomme went on IR and did surprisingly well. Moore had eight touchdowns (as many as Delhomme) with only two picks and went 4-1 finishing out the year as the starter.

The question entering next season is whether or not Delhomme will get his job back, or will Moore enter 2010 as the starter? Regardless, neither can be 100% trusted at this point, so drafting a solid QB in the 2nd or 3rd round would definitely help ease fears in Charlotte.

Washington Redskins

Jason Campbell, many would say, has become somewhat of a scapegoat in D.C. After all, quarterbacking a team that has gone through several offensive play-callers over the past few years coupled with poor ownership can't be easy.

But none the less, Campbell is once again facing an offseason of scrutiny as more front office changes are made. Perhaps bringing in Mike Shanahan will be the key to consistency for Campbell.

His 2009 season wasn't horrible (3618 yards, 64.5% completion percentage, 20 TD, 15 INT) but to many Redskin faithful across the nation, the team could find someone better to grab the reins.

The first need for the 'Skins is O-line help, where you find issues with protection. Campbell was sacked 43 times this year, ranking him not far behind some of the hardest hit QBs in the league.

Yet it wouldn't hurt if Dan Snyder and company snatched up a QB that has a better pocket presence with more mobility.

Buffalo Bills

It could be a make or break draft for the Bills. This is a team that has appeared to be on the cusp of the playoffs the past few years, yet they haven't managed to show it on the field. It all starts with quarterback play.

Trent Edwards and Ryan Fitzpatrick basically split time this year, and neither proved to be ready for the full-time starting gig.

Neither threw more TDs than they did interceptions, and both were sacked a combined 44 times. Ouch. It doesn't help their case either that the offense is loaded with weapons, including a big-time pickup of Terrell Owens last offseason.

Picking up a QB in the draft should be a formality for the Bills. This offense is too talented to be so non-existent.

Cincinnati Bengals

Yes, Carson Palmer is a two-time Pro Bowler and a former Heisman winner. But he's simply not as good as he was five years ago.

Since his solid 2005 season, Palmer's TD throws and completion percentage have decreased while his interceptions have increased. Not a good trend to have.

Still, he's in the upper half of starting QBs in the league, so why worry about replacing him? One word: injuries.

You probably recall the nasty hit Palmer took in the playoffs in 2005 that caused him to have a potential career-ending knee injury. After he came back from surgery and rehab from that, he played extremely well.

In 2008, however, Palmer suffered from a torn ligament in his elbow. Rather than electing to have surgery, Palmer went through rehab and rest to heal it.

This season, Palmer had issues with a sprained thumb. One has to wonder if concerns over his durability could cause the Bengals' front office to look for a solid backup. Both Palmer and his current understudy, J.T. O'Sullivan, are 30 years old, so age will also become a factor at some point.

St. Louis Rams

Perhaps no team in the land is more in need of a fresh start at QB than the Rams. Certainly no team is in better position to draft a QB, as the Rams have the first overall pick.

Marc Bulger has been a fixture in the Rams organization going on nine years now. His record during that time as the Rams starting QB is 40-47. Not great considering the era before his was "The Greatest Show on Turf."

Only once in those eight years a starter has Bulger started all 16 games. And if Carson Palmer has injury issues, Marc Bulger should have his own trainer and rehab staff on 24/7 standby.

And this season more than ever exposed the need for a new QB in St. Louis. Three different guys started at least a game for the Rams (Bulger, Kyle Boller, and Keith Null) and all three threw more interceptions than TDs.

The question for the Rams is this: do they spend the first overall pick on a QB when there's not really one that stands out as a No. 1 pick? Or should they pick a defensive player with that pick and get a QB in the second round? Or do they trade down a few spots, bargin for more picks, and still get a QB in the first round?

Minnesota Vikings

Okay, so you got to this point in the article, and you're thinking that I have no clue what I'm talking about. Favre has put up MVP-like numbers this year, guiding the Vikings to a first round playoff bye.

You need to also realize Favre is about as committed to the Vikings as Tiger is to Elin.

Yes, Favre has had a terrific season, but there's not one Vikings fan out there that doesn't at least have a small inclination to believe No. 4 is one-and-done in Minnesota.

Besides, if he does come back, he certainly can't be considered the "future" of the franchise. To that effect, neither can Tavaris Jackson or Sage Rosenfels.

It makes sense for Minnesota to draft a QB at some point in the first three rounds of the draft. If Favre leaves, then you've at least got a youngster to hand the controls to at some point next year. And if Brett stays, who better to mentor a fresh-out-of-college QB?

Jacksonville Jaguars

It's not so much that David Garrard has done a bad job in Jacksonville. In fact, given the offensive line struggles of recent years, he's done remarkably well. But the Jaguars, like all other 31 NFL teams are a business, and nothing raises a team's revenue like a new QB.

Jacksonville struggled mightily to fill seats this year, and it looks as if a new coach isn't on the horizon, at least not for 2010. That said, Jacksonville doesn't need to just fill holes in their roster, they need to make a statement with this draft.

Many have suggested the Jags draft Tim Tebow, a sure fire way to sell tickets. That may be true, but he needs to be a good fit for the team. If you draft a QB that isn't surrounded with questions regarding his position, you show the fans and the city that you're committed to building a winner and not just a team of individual players for entertainment purposes.

Arizona Cardinals

Now is the time for the Cardinals to decide: is Matt Leinart the future QB of this team?

Obviously the past few seasons have belonged to Kurt Warner, who has put up numbers similar to his glory days in St. Louis. But like Favre in Minnesota, Warner isn't getting any younger and won't be around forever.

So do the Cards make the decision to keep Leinart around in hopes he can be able to take over full-time in the next year or two?

Arizona could find themselves in a situation similar to the Bills: loaded with offensive weapons, but without a quality QB to throw to them. The best bet is for the Cards to look for a QB in the third or fourth round to at least put some pressure on Leinart and make him prove his talent like he did in college at USC.

Tennessee Titans

The impressive play of Vince Young in the second half of the season may satisfy Jeff Fisher enough to quell the need to draft a QB. Young actually threw for more TDs and less interceptions this season than he did in his Pro Bowl year of 2007 with about 130 less pass attempts. He did a great job leading a team back from a horrific start to playoff contention in the final weeks of the season.

But it may take more than one season for the Titan's front office to fully place their trust in Young. It may be a good idea to draft a QB to take over should Young have another disasterous start like his 2008 season.

Kerry Collins should be considered nothing more than a serviceable backup at this point in his career, but could be someone to mentor a young rookie QB.